Preface

About 14 years ago, we wrote Conquer the Chaos to teach small business owners how to grow a successful small business without going crazy. The book was a New York Times bestseller, and entrepreneurs all over the world told us how much it helped them. We shared it with our customers and used it as the foundation of what we teach to entrepreneurs. Our company grew to over $100 million in annual sales, with over a hundred thousand users and 2,000 partners who teach and serve our customers. And yet for all the success of the first edition, it was incomplete. Furthermore, some of those original strategies have morphed and needed to be updated as the world changed.

And a lot has changed in 14 years. Digital marketing has become a necessary part of small business success. Work-life balance is completely different in the new world, with COVID rewriting the rules entirely. And yet work-life balance is actually tougher for entrepreneurs today than it was 14 years ago. In addition to the market changes, we've learned so much from serving entrepreneurs at Keap. Our methods have evolved. Our products have evolved. Automation has evolved. And now AI is changing everything.

Small business owners need the revised edition of Conquer the Chaos now more than ever. The world has become so chaotic. It is incredibly challenging to grow a successful business when the business dominates your life. The Lifecycle Automation method we've pioneered has been a total game changer for small businesses. The work-life balance techniques are critical for balanced growth, with business and personal success. The Leadership section comes from years of practicing and teaching a model that creates great results in great places to work. I'm excited to share important updates to the book that will be appreciated by original readers and new readers alike.

This is no minor revision. The six strategies from the first edition have been reworked into the Six Keys to Success. There is more emphasis on the execution of the entrepreneur's life plan and how it ties together with the business strategy. The revised edition is more practical, more concrete, and more balanced in its approach to business and personal success for entrepreneurs. It is born out of lessons learned working with entrepreneurs for another 14 years since my co-founder and I wrote Conquer the Chaos.

Speaking of my co-founder, Scott Martineau has taken a product role at Keap so he can focus exclusively on product development for our customers. That's his passion. He liked the idea of a revised edition and he liked even more the idea of not having to co-write it. He fully supports the Six Keys shared in the book. Scott continues to be a great business partner and friend.

I should also note that Scott's brother, Eric, the other co-founder of our business, is back at Keap, after leaving the business for a tumultuous season. Such are the ups and downs of entrepreneurship. It's great to have Scott and Eric doing what they love at Keap: building game-changing-no, life-changing-products for entrepreneurs and their teams.

The bottom line is, since we wrote Conquer the Chaos about 14 years ago, we've had a lot of experience with the Six Keys to Success. We've never put together all Six Keys and taught them succinctly in one place. We've practiced them ourselves and we've worked with our customers doing the same. We have observed what works and why it works. As we've studied and practiced the Six Keys to Success, we have refined them and distilled them into actionable steps all entrepreneurs can take to improve their business and personal life. We are so excited to share these powerful keys with you.

HOW THIS BOOK WILL LEAD YOU TO SUCCESS

This book does not contain stuffy research or theoretical models that only make sense in a classroom. Each of the Six Keys to Success is based on real-life entrepreneurship, with practical examples and stories from over two decades of living and teaching this stuff. We live and prove the Six Keys to Success every day, as do our customers and entrepreneurs everywhere, sometimes almost accidentally. Sure, we stumble at times and lose our edge with one Key or another. But we are practitioners of the Six Keys to Success. And we have experienced and seen more than enough results to know these keys work for those who use them to unlock business and personal success.

In Part 1, "The Entrepreneur's Quest for Success," the first three chapters present the real story of small business ownership. They include the fear, the pain, the ego, the overwhelm and the emotional struggle. They also include the thrill, rewards, and triumph of small business ownership. In Chapter 1, "The Entrepreneurial Revolution," you'll learn why millions of individuals choose to become entrepreneurs, even though they might know the struggles they'll soon experience.

Chapter 2 lays out the entrepreneur's "Quest for Success." You'll learn about the Hierarchy of Success, the real definition of success for entrepreneurs, and the stages of small business growth.

In Chapter 3, you'll learn what small business chaos is, why it happens, and how it can block our success or even destroy us as entrepreneurs. We'll cover "The Dark Side of Entrepreneurship" and how it shows up in the extreme, as well as the more subtle ways it affects us if we're not careful. You'll come to realize we can and must conquer the chaos to achieve the success we want as entrepreneurs and we'll introduce the way to do it: the Six Keys to Success for Entrepreneurs.

In Part 2, Chapters 4 through 6 cover "The Personal Keys to Success." In Chapter 4, we dive into "Mindset"-the one that entrepreneurs must cultivate to win. This is the mental stamina and emotional capital entrepreneurs need to rise above the chaos and discouragement that are commonplace in entrepreneurship. Successful entrepreneurs are intentional about protecting their mindset and fueling their positive energy so they can achieve peak performance.

Chapter 5 covers "Vision." But we're not talking about the business vision. Here, we're talking about the personal vision entrepreneurs need, the Life Vision that provides meaning and direction to your business pursuits. Building a small business is incredibly demanding. Without a clear Life Vision, the chaos of the business will almost certainly knock your priorities out of whack. Your Life Vision enables you to build a business that serves others while protecting what matters most and propelling you to achieve your most exciting business and personal goals.

Chapter 6 is about "Rhythm," which rounds out and ties together the three Personal Keys to Success for entrepreneurs. One of the amazing things about entrepreneurship is the "lab for life" the business provides to help you become your best self. This key is about creating a natural and exciting flow in your daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, and annual execution, which ties into your Life Vision, to help you become your best self.

In Part 3, "The Business Keys to Success," Chapters 7 through 9 explore the Business Keys to Success, starting with "Strategy." Most small businesses start with big goals and dreams, but the daily grind of running a business can douse the flames or diffuse their efforts across too many "priorities." Successful entrepreneurs have a way of doing the right things at the right time instead of constantly running their business in a reactive, firefighting mode. They know what to say no to. In this chapter, you'll learn how to set your Company Strategy and your Customer Strategy so you can proactively build a successful business.

In Chapter 8, we hit "Automation," which is the big time-saver that unlocks the ability to grow the business and maintain an enjoyable lifestyle. As I always say, "The fortune is in the follow-up." Lifecycle Automation (LCA) is a proven method for automating the follow-up process in your Customer Strategy so you can grow sales and save time. Simply put, it's a systematic way to get and keep customers by creating great business relationships. LCA is the great game-changer for small businesses, making it possible to get off the "trading-hours-for-dollars" hamster wheel and build a profitable, enjoyable business that brings balance to your life through the power of automation.

In Chapter 9, we cover "Leadership," which makes it possible for entrepreneurs to have great impact and freedom and achieve their highest goals. Many entrepreneurs want to keep the business small because they don't want to lead a team of people. But that limits their income and impact. The truth is, leading your team to achieve a shared vision for the business is a skill any entrepreneur can learn. And when successful business owners learn how to go "from entrepreneur to CEO," their success and freedom soar.

In Part 4, "Putting the Keys into Practice," Chapters 10 and 11 show you how to put into practice the Six Keys to create sustainable success. These chapters focus on how to implement the Six Keys, with proven tips and tricks to "keep going, keep serving, and keep...